AHL Texas Stars

Gameday Preview - Abbotsford at Texas

Published on January 11, 2012 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Texas Stars News Release


Abbotsford Heat (23-10-3-0, 49 points) at Texas Stars (15-16-1-2, 33 points)

Texas and Abbotsford meet for the fifth time this season, with the Heat leading the season series by sweeping the first four games. The Stars and the Heat will play a total of eight games this season. The two teams met for a pair of games in Abbotsford at the end of December. The Heat took both games, including the last meeting between the two teams on Dec. 30, a 2-1 defeat for the Stars. Texas hosted Abbotsford for a pair of games in mid-November, with the Heat claiming the weekend series. Texas is 0-3-0-1 against Abbotsford this season. Wednesday is the 13th all-time meeting in AHL history between the two teams; Texas is 4-6-0-2 in the previous 12 meetings. The two teams were placed in the West Division this season and will meet as many times this season as they did in the last two years combined. The 2009-10 series was dictated by the home team winning every game. In 2010-11, the road team won every game. The Heat has taken the last six meetings between the clubs, dating back to last season. Abbotsford is one point back of first place Oklahoma City and two points ahead of Houston in the West Division. Overall, the Heat is tied with Hershey for the second highest point total in the AHL. The Heat and Bears are also tied for the best winning percentage in the AHL at .681. Texas is three points back of fourth-place San Antonio in the West Division. The Stars are six points back of Rochester for the eighth and final playoff spot.

The Stars have four wins in their last ten games, going 4-4-1-1 over that span. Texas recently wrapped up a busy weekend with three games in three nights. The Stars claimed four out of six points (1-0-1-1) and carry a three-game points streak into Wednesday's game. Texas is coming off a 6-5 overtime loss at home to Rockford on Sunday at CPC. The Stars are 7-7-1-1 at home this season, having outscored their opponents 53-50 on the scoreboard. Texas has taken four of the last six home games and posted points in five of the last six at home. The Stars are 7-12-0-2 against the West Division this season. Texas' scoring has been spread out evenly this season, with 34 first-period tallies and 39 second-period markers. The Stars lead the opposition in second-period scoring with 39-38 edge. The Stars have been outscored 106-102 overall. Texas is 10th in the league with a 3.00 goals per game average. The team has 22 goals over its last seven games. Texas ranks 26th defensively with a 3.12 goals against average. The Stars are 11-0-1-1 when leading after two periods of play, but they are 1-14-0-0 when trailing after two periods of play. The team is 7-7-1-2 in games decided by one goal this season. Texas leads the AHL with five overtime wins this season, going 5-0-1-2 when tied after regulation. The Stars are tied for second in the AHL with six shorthanded goals this season.

Abbotsford ended a two-game winless skid with a dominating 5-0 victory in San Antonio on Tuesday night. Goalie Danny Taylor stopped all 26 shots he faced for the team's AHL leading 16th road win. Forwards Jon Rheault and Quintin Laing each had a goal and an assist as the Heat led 4-0 after two periods of play with a pair of goals in the both of the first two periods. The Heat is 10-2-2-0 since December 2nd and 6-2-2-0 over the last ten. Abbotsford is 16-4-0-0 on the road this season, outscoring opponents 35-26. The Heat is 8-0-0-0 in one-goal games on the road this year. Abbotsford is tied for second in the league lead with five shootout wins this season (5-0). The Heat is 14-3-2-0 when scoring the game's first goal of the night. The club has produced the most goals this season in the second period, besting the opposition 37-26 in the middle frame. The team has 28 first-period goals and 24 third-period tallies. Abbotsford sits second best in the AHL with a 2.43 goals against average and the team places 21st in the league with a 2.69 goals per game average. The Heat is 9-1-1-0 when leading after one period and 13-2-0-0 when leading after two. They are 13-5-0-0 when outshooting the opposition and 11-2-2-0 when tied after one period of play. The team is third in the AHL with 13 one-goal victories this season (12-3-3-0).

In the previous four games between the teams, Abbotsford outscored Texas 13-7, including a 3-2 shootout win in the first meeting of the season. Goalie Leland Irving was the biggest difference in the first two games, stopping 69 of 72 (95.8%). Goalie Danny Taylor has stopped 76 of 78 shots (.949) in two starts. Texas is 2-for-22 on the power play against Abbotsford and 11-for-13 on the penalty kill. Jon Rheault leads all scorers with seven points in four games against Texas. Stars center Travis Morin has four assists in four games versus Abbotsford.

Star Sign Connolly to PTO

The Texas Stars announced on Tuesday that the team has signed forward Brendan Connolly to a PTO (professional tryout agreement).

Connolly is currently third overall in the ECHL scoring race, potting 20 goals and dishing out 23 assists for 43 points in 31 games with Greenville. Connolly leads his team in goals, assists, points and penalty minutes (121). Overall, Connolly is second in the league in goals, fifth in assist and seventh in penalty minutes. The 5-foot-7, 175-pound forward is in his third full season of pro hockey, spending the bulk of his career in the ECHL with Greenville and Elmira. The Canmore, AB, native has suited up 143 times in the ECHL, scoring 61 goals and totaling 132 points. In 2010-11, Connolly played in three games for Adirondack of the AHL, going scoreless in his time with the Phantoms. Prior to turning pro, the 26-year-old played four seasons at Ferris State University, scoring 35 goals and totaling 81 points in 147 CCHA games.

Texas Releases Goalie Spratt, Forward Lowe

The Texas Stars announced on Monday that the team has released forward Ian Lowe from a PTO (professional tryout agreement). Prior to Sunday's game, the Stars released goalie Jimmy Spratt from a PTO.

Lowe suited up in six games for the Stars from Dec. 27 - Jan. 8, failing to register a point in his time with Texas. The rookie forward played the first 30 games of his pro career with the Idaho Steelheads, Texas' ECHL affiliate. The 5-foot-9, 175-pound center was third on the team with 12 assists and 19 points at the time of his recall. The 24-year-old played the last four years at Bemidji State University from 2007-11. In 142 WCHA games, Lowe netted 37 goals and set up 42 for 79 collegiate points.

Spratt played in two games for Texas, going 1-1-0 with a 2.02 goals against average and a .909 save percentage. Spratt is a third-year pro who started the season with the Idaho, going 5-5-0 with a 2.95 goals against average and a .920 save percentage over 12 games. He split last season between Toledo and Victoria of the ECHL, as well as Rapid City of the CHL. In all, Spratt made 20 appearances, going 9-7-1 with a 3.91 goals against average and a .873 save percentage. The Calgary Flames drafted the 26-year old in the seventh round (#213 overall) of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft.

What's Ahead:

DATE OPPONENT TIME RADIO

Wednesday, January 11 vs. Abbotsford 7:30 PM 104.9 FM

Friday, January 13 at Grand Rapids 6:00 PM (CT) 92.5 FM

Saturday, January 14 at Milwaukee 7:00 PM 104.9 FM

Monday, January 16 at Rockford 1:05 PM 92.5 FM

Wednesday, January 18 at Chicago 7:00 PM 104.9 FM

* All times listed are central time

LAST THREE GAMES

Rockford 6 at Texas 5 OT 1/8/12

The Texas Stars were defeated by the Rockford IceHogs 6-5 in overtime in front of 5,179 fans at the Cedar Park Center on Sunday. Rockford center Brandon Pirri scored the game-winning goal just 1:02 into overtime. Five Texas skaters had multi-point nights in the OT defeat. Center Scott Glennie put up two goals and an assist, while left wing Matt Fraser and defenseman Brad Lukowich each registered a goal and an assist. Forwards Colton Sceviour and Travis Morin both had two assists for the Stars. Texas goalie Tyler Beskorowany stopped 29 shots in the loss.

Rockford 2 at Texas 4 1/7/12

The Texas Stars defeated the Rockford IceHogs 4-2 in front of 5,626 fans at the Cedar Park Center on Saturday night. Three Texas skaters had multi-point nights as the Stars improved to 7-7-0-1 at home. Defenseman Brad Lukowich notched a goal and two assists while right wing Colton Sceviour added three assists. Left wing Francis Wathier registered a goal and an assist for Texas. IceHogs' defenseman Dylan Olsen put up two assists on the night. Texas goalie Andrew Raycroft ( 1-0-1) stopped 25 of 27 shots in his first Texas win of the season. Rockford goalie Alex Richards (6 -10-2) stopped 27 of 30 shots as the IceHogs fell to 6-8-1-2 on the road.

Texas 3 at San Antonio 4 SO 1/6/12

The Texas Stars were defeated by the San Antonio Rampage 4-3 in a shootout in front of 7,867 fans at the AT&T Center on Friday night. San Antonio went three for three in the shootout, while the Stars failed to tally a shootout goal in the defeat. San Antonio goalie Dov Grumet-Morris (6-3-0) stopped 31 of 34 in regulation and three of three in the shootout win. Texas goalie Andrew Raycroft (0-0-1) stopped 27 of 30 in regulation and failed to make a save on three shootout attempts. Stars forwards Colton Sceviour, Matt Fraser and Eric Godard each scored in regulation, as the club moved to 8-9-0-1 on the road this season. Rampage forward Tim Kennedy scored two of his team's three power-play goals.

Texas Stars

Center Travis Morin and winger Matt Fraser lead Texas in scoring. Morin is the clubhouse leader with 28 assists and 32 points in his first 34 games played. He ranks fifth in the AHL for assists and he is also fifth among AHLers with 14 power-play helpers. He has ten assists in his last 10 games played. Rookie forward Matt Fraser is second in scoring with 29 points in 34 games. He leads the team with 19 goals scored and 125 shots on net. Fraser is tied for second in the AHL with nine power-play goals and he is tied for fourth overall in the AHL in rookie scoring. The All-Star ranks second among all first-year skaters with 19 goals and he is first in shots on goal by a rookie. Fraser had a ten-game scoring streak end on Dec. 30 in Abbotsford. The run was the longest scoring streak in team history. He has 11 points in his last ten games. Forwards Francis Wathier, Colton Sceviour and Ryan Garbutt round out the top scorers for Texas. For the season, Wathier has seven goals and 14 assists for 21 points in 34 games played. Wathier leads the team with a +8. Center Ryan Garbutt has 22 points (8g-14a) in 34 games. Garbutt leads the team with 59 penalty minutes, followed by Luke Gazdic's 57 minutes. Garbutt is tied for the AHL lead with three shorthanded assists this year. With two points on Sunday night, Colton Sceviour has now collected ten points in his last ten games, scoring four goals and setting up six others, to go along with a +6.

Veteran defenseman Dan Spang leads all Texas defenseman with 15 points off two goals and 13 assists in 33 games. Rookie Brenden Dillon (2-12-14) is second in points and he is first among D-men with 43 penalty minutes. Veteran defender Maxime Fortunus has 11 points in 30 games, while Brad Lukowich has 13 points in 30 games. Lukowich has seven points in his last eight games. The 16-year pro is four games away from playing in his 1,000th pro game. He has back-to-back-multi-point nights combining for five points in his last two outings. .

Goalies Andrew Raycroft and Tyler Beskorowany split time in net for Texas. Raycroft picked up his first win with Texas on Saturday night. He is 1-0-1 with a 2.40 goals against average and a .912 save percentage in two starts for the Stars. Beskorowany is 6-9-0 with a 3.08 goals against average and a .891 save percentage.

Special Teams

The Stars have converted 34 of 162 power plays for a 21.0% conversion rate, as Texas ranks sixth overall in power play percentage. The team broke out of a 2-for-48 slump with six power-play goals over the last four games - going 6-for-18 over that span. The Stars have killed off 113 of 136 opponents' power plays (83.1%), ranking 13th overall on the penalty kill. The Stars have killed off 75 of the last 85 penalties (88.2%). The Heat is second in the AHL on the penalty kill, stopping 87.0% of their opponents' power plays. Overall, Abbotsford ranks tenth in the AHL on the power play after going 30-for-152 (19.7%).

The Abbotsford Heat

Forward Krys Kolanos leads the Heat offense with a team-high 17 goals and 38 points in 27 games played this season. He also leads the team with eight power-play goals, 14 power-play points and 135 shots on goal. The former first-round pick of Phoenix (19th overall in 2000) is tied for sixth in the league scoring race. Veteran center Ben Walter is second on the team with 20 assists and third in points with 26 points in 36 games played. Right wing Jon Rheault is second on the team with 14 goals and second overall in scoring with 29 points in 33 games played.

In net, the Heat sport goalies Danny Taylor and Joni Ortio. After starting the year in Springfield, Taylor is 8-3-0 with a 2.02 goals against average and a .940 save percentage with Abbotsford. Overall, he is 13-6-0 with a 2.26 GAA and a .930 save percentage. Joni Ortio backs up Taylor in the Abbotsford crease. Ortio is 0-3-0 with a 3.07 goals against average and a.889 save percentage. Taylor has started 11 of the last 12 games.

Check out the Texas Stars Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



American Hockey League Stories from January 11, 2012


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central